By James V. Ruocco
In "Sherlock Holmes and the Haunted Cabaret," a popular television game show called "The Helping Hand," discovers a mysterious phantom in the wings who threatens the livelihood of all involved with a terrible vengeance that brings Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved character up on to the stage of the television studio to unmask (no pun intended) this psycho using the same whirlwind Baker Street strategies that put him on the map in the first place.
Who is this madman?
Is he a man?
Is he a woman?
What has he or she to gain?
Why has "The Helping Hand" been targeted?
Is is someone from behind-the-scene's of the popular game show?
Is it the producer?
Is it the host?
Is it the hostess?
Is is a shamed contestant who lost the big prize?
As scripted by Phil Hill, there are a number of possibilities, but the final decision rests not upon Sherlock Holmes, but every single member of the audience. Here, you decide the ending of the play and who to place in the limelight as the villain or villainess of the piece.
But before you do, there's lots of comedy, lots of drama, lots of clues, lots of big musical numbers, lots of dancing and lots of jokes to keep you and everyone in the theater on their toes as "Sherlock Holmes and the Haunted Cabaret" thrills, excites, entices and amps up the entertainment ante with enough guffawed glee and banana peel delirium to last right up until the big climax at the end of Act II.
At Downtown Cabaret, "Sherlock Holmes and the Haunted Cabaret" is being staged by Ricky Altamirano, an intuitive director who brings the right mindset and understanding to the genre, its well-constructed whodunit caseload, its logic puzzles and deceits, its chatter and expectations and its mounting, mannered curiosity. More importantly, he takes hold of the obviously giddy, double-barrelled plot and has great fun with it, always knowing when to go for a laugh, try something serious, toss you the wrong clue, unspool the invented rules or shake up the play's apparent, ordained fustiness.
Half the fun, of course, is discovering who the culprit is and why the act in question was done. Altamirano's eye for detail and his perfectly-timed staging for the play's eight individual scenes (four per act) fuels the fire as it becomes one of the most pleasurable aspects of his work here. In turn, the play's high-charged energy never falters for a moment even when Phil Hill's play text dictates a well-placed song, dance or both to thrust the action forward most engagingly.
This being an interactive piece of children's theatre, the audience is required to become an active participant when necessary through a show of hands, loud or not-so-loud applause, potent vocal responses, quick-witted improvisation and finally, the selection of the culprit which depending on their choice, changes the end of the play from performance to performance. Whereas some productions tend to milk or overplay these concepts, here, Altamirano keeps a tight reign on what to say and how to proceed within the confines of the script and its subsequent breaks to elicit audience response. It's all very professional, lively, consistent and great fun for both the on-stage actors and every single kid, teenager and adult in the audience.
"Sherlock Holmes and the Haunted Cabaret" stars Andrea Pane as Sherlock Holmes, Ashley DePascale as Joanna Watson, Lauren Bell as Vanessa Pearl, Ricky Altamirano as Montgomery Conyers and Zach Fontanez as Godfrey Rayburn. All five are not only well chosen for their respective roles, but deliver well-honed character portraits, laced with page-turning finesse, charm, wit and break-away exhilaration. Taking their cues from the script or from the audience, they never once break character for a second.
Sherlock Holmes, played by Andrea Pane, absolutely looks the part from head to toe in Leslie Neilson-Bowman's well-chosen costuming. Played with chilling spotlight accuracy by the actor, Pane has the patrician manner of the famous London sleuth, his razor-sharp cheekbones, his shameless magnifying glass polish and his aquiline grandstanding. He also deftly projects the character's famous deduction logic, his lengthy investigative conversations, his Baker Street ethics and his ability to trap the real culprit just when you think it's someone else entirely. Pane is also suitably cool, serious, intense and aloof when need be. And when asked to take the plunge into the play's broad comic directives, he nails the shtick perfectly with panache and well-timed wit and invention.
As Vanessa Pearl, a character modeled, in part, after "Wheel of Fortune" hostess Vanna White, Lauren Bell has charm, charisma, sass, sweetness and stage presence to boot. She carries off this bubbly role beautifully and is incredibly resourceful at illuminating the character's bright-colored persona, her smarts and ingenuity and her goldstar ambitions. Ashley DePascale makes an invigorating Joanna Watson, channeling the character's dedication for playing Holmes' able crime solving partner, ultimately deserving of her chance to take the lead. She's a breath of fresh air with a flair for playing both physical comedy and pathos with hands-on-surprise and tom-foolery.
As Godfrey Rayburn, "The Helping Hand's" beleaguered production assistant, Zach Fontanez displays genius comic timing and technical skills that unravel with faultless precision and flustered spirit. "Sherlock" director Ricky Altamirano, in the role of Montgomery Conyers, "The Helping Hand's" razzle-dazzle game show host, knows how to play comedy to the fullest, chart the on-the-spot improvisation brilliantly and nail anything that's thrown at him from the audience with the intuitiveness of a true musical hall vaudevillian. He's a master at reducing audience members to helpless, wobbly jelly and sustaining laughter with wonderfully hammy bits and bobs that are joyously manic and absolutely right for this giggly choreographed mayhem.
"Sherlock Homes and the Haunted Cabaret" is fast, confident and deliciously witty children's theatre. The script is lively and well-suited to the genre it parodies. Under Ricky Altamirano's playful direction, the five-member cast get it right at every single turn. So if you're a big Sherlock Holmes fan looking to play sleuth and solve the mystery at hand, this production makes wonderful use of Arthur Conan Doyle's world famous detective in between the laughs, the mayhem, the big reveal and the songs and dances. You can even come to the theater dressed as Holmes or Watson or any other British whodunit figure if you so choose.
"Sherlock Holmes and the Haunted Cabaret" is being staged at Downtown Cabaret Theatre (263 Golden Hill St., Bridgeport, CT), now through November 3.
For tickets or more information, call (203) 576-1636.
website: dtcab.com
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